Lieutenant Meehan's C-47 Crash Site Memorial

A memorial to the men of the 439th Troop Carrier, 91st Squadron and the paratroopers of the 101st Airborne 506th parachute Infantry Regiment, Easy Company who lost their lives when the C-47 they were travelling in was hit by German Flak.

Their Douglas C-47 No.66 (42-93095) departed Upottery Airfield on the 5th June 1944, before being engaged by German anti-aircraft fire . The crew attempted to the land the plane in a field near Beuzeville-au-Plain but the plane burst into flames after clipping a hedge.

Today artefacts from an excavation of the crash site can be seen at Dead Mans Corner Museum located a 15 minutes drive away near Saint-Mere-Eglise.

It was this plane that was carrying Lieutenant T. Meehan, commander of Easy Company, in his absence the men of Easy Company served under Lieutenant Winters as depicted in the series Band of Brothers.

You can read more about the crash and Lt Meehan in our article Lieutenant Meehan and the crash of Douglas C-47 42-93095

Cet avion no 66 volait en tête de formation. Transpercé d'obus par la
defense anti-aérienne, il tenta un atterrissage de fortune. Puis s'écrasa
violemment contre une haie et explosa. Il brula sans discontinuer
pendant 3 jours, avec une chaleur si intense que toute approche fut
impossible.

Le lieutenant T. MEEHAN III, commandant la compagnie E du 506th
PIR, se trouvait à bord avec la section d'état-major et transportait cartes,
documents, plans, qui firent bien défaut aux troupes an début du
débarquement.

Les producteurs S. SPIELBERG et T. HANKS du film Band of Brothers
parlent de ces héros et du lieutenant T. MEEHAN III disparus.

Lors des recherches, l'association Forced Landing ne tirera des 80 cm
de cendres que des plaques matricules, crickets, bagues, une montre aux
aiguilles fossilisées á 01h12 AM, des boucles de parachutes toutes,
fermées et un casque... plat comme une feuille de papier.

Which translates to:

This aircraft, No. 66, was flying at the head of the formation. Pierced by shells from the anti-aircraft defenses, it attempted an emergency landing. It then crashed violently into a hedge and exploded. It burned continuously for 3 days, with heat so intense that no one could approach it.

Lieutenant T. MEEHAN III, commander of Company E, 506th PIR, was on board with the staff section, carrying maps, documents, and plans that were sorely missed by the troops at the start of the landing.

Producers S. Spielberg and T. Hanks, of the film Band of Brothers, speak of these heroes and of Lieutenant T. MEEHAN III, who was lost.

During the excavation, the Forced Landing association could recover from the 80 cm of ash only dog tags, crickets, rings, a watch with its hands fossilized at 1:12 AM, parachute buckles all still fastened and a helmet... flattened like a sheet of paper.

Which translates to: